Whether you were one of those people who allowed themselves to get drunk on hyperbole, or you just genuinely expected a bit more from Apple this time around, it’s fair to say that an awful lot of people have been left disappointed by yesterday’s iPhone 4S announcement.

But even amid the hype and frenzy that tends to precede the arrival of a new Apple product, there were many very real and tangible indications that an iPhone 5 was indeed on the way, so it’s not difficult to understand why so many people expected to see something a bit juicier than a reworked (and visually identical) iPhone 4.

Statistics from leading social media analysts Crimson Hexagon (via ZDNet) show that, on the Twitterverse at least, expectations for the new iPhone were high and, for the most part, were not met. Of over 285,000 opinions and 383,000 mentions included in the survey, these key results were extracted:

25% of tweets were distinctly positive about the announcement

Of that 25%: 14% were ‘excited about the iPhone 4S’, while just 11% indicated that they ‘plan to buy’ it

49% of tweets were distinctly negative about the announcement

Of that 49%: 33% were ‘disappointed that [the iPhone 4S] is not the iPhone 5’, while 16% unfavorably compared Tim Cook with his predecessor, Steve Jobs

26% of tweets were neutral in tone, such as those tweets which were just sharing the news with followers and friends

There is no strong basis to suggest that these figures are completely representative of the market as a whole, and it’s also important to note that these tweets were sampled on the same day as the announcement, and so their immediate reactions might not necessarily reflect their later opinions once they’ve had time to let the news set in.

But given the overwhelming positivity with which consumers have previously greeted Apple product launches, the scale of negative reaction shown in these figures – and still evident in articles, editorials, blogs and tweets across the web – is certainly not what Apple was hoping to see. Ultimately, though, the sales figures for the 4S will conclusively tell the true story of how consumers feel about the new iPhone.